103. Iron Vault
Cheol Mu Geuk's eyes widened as he spoke.
"That's right. You."
"This young punk keeps calling me 'you' and—oh! Isn't this Gyoa Hongju?"
"Brought it as a gift."
"You should've led with something this good. Enough of this—bring out the drinks, the drinks!"
"How about we finish the talk first, then drink?"
"You stubborn bastard. Rotten punk. Sneaky little shit."
Of course, I didn't even snort at Cheol Mu Geuk's grumbling.
"Alright, Cho Ryang. Explain it to him."
"...You only ever bitch at me. You're always nice to everyone else, aren't you?"
"It's your imagination. You gonna act childish in front of the kid?"
A vein throbbed on Cheol Mu Geuk's forehead with a pop. But as I'd said, he couldn't throw a tantrum in front of Cho Ryang.
He was a tree that gave endlessly, but for all that, he was one of the heads of the Mad Demon Six Families and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's greatest artisan. The title of Heavenly Grade blacksmith wasn't something he'd traded sweets for. A man of his stature deserved his authority—
"Oho, is that so? What a cute little guy."
"Hee hee, thank you!"
Cheol Mu Geuk patted Cho Ryang's head as the boy explained about Mu Geuk Cheon Hwa. He didn't even look like an old man anymore, yet here he was, praising his grandson at a festival like some doting grandpa. And Cho Ryang was even taller than him now.
"...Father seems to have taken a real liking to that kid."
Cheol So Pyeong murmured to me. Ever since he'd acknowledged me as a true powerhouse, he'd been nothing but polite. I, on the other hand, stuck to my usual half-formal tone.
"Why's that?"
"He's never once praised his own son, Seok-a, like that."
"Young Master Cheol. There's a saying back East."
"What saying?"
"You hit the precious child one more time and give the hated one an extra rice cake."
Cheol So Pyeong clamped his mouth shut, lost in thought at my words.
That father and son duo—always brooding like that whenever they got the chance. Typical stubborn blacksmiths.
Anyway.
"You get what Cho Ryang's saying?"
"My ears work fine. Unlike some, I haven't lost my marbles."
"The workers must've passed on what Elder Il told you, huh?"
"The workers? Anyone with ears could've heard it. I knew that Elder Il was a greedy one."
"Anyway."
"No 'anyway' about it."
His usual lax expression hardened as Cheol Mu Geuk spoke.
"Why should I help you?"
"Didn't I call you my benefactor?"
"That's personal. This isn't. Catching that fire bird is your mission. Got nothing to do with me."
Fair enough. From the perspective of the head of a massive clan like the Goe Mountain Iron Family, even bringing it up was presumptuous.
"Which means you'll pull out some line to shut me down right now, right?"
He wasn't wrong. It might sour things a bit.
Soon enough, Cheol Mu Geuk chuckled.
"Just trying to act all serious. Felt like you were taking me too lightly."
"If I did, I wouldn't be asking a favor."
"Fair point. With your momentum right now, you could kick down our front gate yelling and no one would bat an eye."
The words describing me these days were downright flashy.
Super Peak master.
Youngest head of the Mad Demon Six Families.
Heavenly Demon's true fiancé, and so on.
Each one was impressive on its own, all piled onto a single person: me. Add in beating Kwak Ri Yeon in single combat and crushing Jin Yeong Ryeong on Jan Hon Do, and the rumor mill was churning: "Sado Hwan is the strongest of the Six Family heads."
Didn't you say I was supposed to lay low like a dead rat at first, you damn bird?
'Yeah, tell me about it. Feels like I've turned into some attention whore.'
Looking back, piecing together what I'd thought were the best moves at every moment... I'd done a ton of insane shit.
How the hell had I mustered the guts to stand up to Sado Gwang? To face Super Peak masters? If I went back in time, I couldn't do it twice.
Still, thanks to all that, my reputation in the cult was skyrocketing nonstop.
"What, scared I'll kick your house? Hurt my foot more like."
"It's a figure of speech. Watch yourself, Head Sado."
"Watch myself?"
"You know plenty are gunning for you now, right?"
I nodded.
High status and fame in the cult meant challengers crawling out of the woodwork.
"Word from the Heavenly Demon Palace has spread everywhere. Means even the 'rankless' will start coming after you."
Rankless.
The cult was all about hierarchy. High-ranking cultists in the main sect could bend ranks with their positions, but most lived by the pecking order.
The rankless were those outside it.
Having a rank meant constant comparisons, deep entanglement in the cult's system. It forced actions against your will. The cult worshipped the strong, yet plenty ended up stuck in admin drudgery without training—like the family heads.
The rankless rebelled against that. Like hermits, they devoted themselves solely to martial pursuits. In jianghu terms, they were like recluses.
In a way, the purest cultists.
They trained in the cult's remote mountains, popping out occasionally to prove their strength. And every so often, they spat out monsters.
The Third and Fifth Heavenly Demons were rankless. Yi Se-ryeong too, kinda.
She'd holed up training obsessively, then burst onto the scene and became Heavenly Demon almost immediately.
I answered Cheol Mu Geuk.
"Let 'em come."
"Not a big deal? You're one arrogant bastard."
It wasn't arrogance or dismissal.
Ranked or rankless, any Peak expert could slaughter me. Even rankless monsters would be Super Peak. Surviving ten seconds against one was a win.
To me, they were all the same brand of lunatic. Besides...
The scary thing about rankless is not knowing who's in there.
Ranks meant fights, leaked techniques. Rankless were enigmas.
But I knew. At least the ones mentioned or shown in the story. A few names came to mind to watch for.
"Yeah, could get annoying. Thanks for the heads-up, Iron Head."
"Not like I care about you. Just bring more booze."
"So, no conclusion yet? What's the verdict?"
"Verdict? Even if you're not like that brother of yours, you're still a Sado. If I say no, you'll pull some scheme, right?"
"Insult me or praise me—just pick one."
"That's why I'm twisting myself up."
Then Cheol Mu Geuk turned to Cheol So Pyeong.
"So Pyeong."
"Yes."
"We open the Iron Vault."
"The Iron Vault?"
Cheol So Pyeong jumped, asking again in shock. I was just as startled.
The Iron Vault wasn't some iron bag—it was the Iron Family's room.
For the Goe Mountain Iron Family, treasure artisans, it was a vault holding their most precious items.
And in Murim Returner, most of it burns up.
In the original, Cheol Mu Geuk dies, the Iron Family falls. The vault's destruction was the fatal blow.
With their Heavenly Demon Secret Vault equivalent gone, collapse was inevitable.
"Yeah. That Mu Geuk Cheon Hwa or whatever—named after me, that freak bird. You can't catch it with ordinary gear."
Unlike his tone with me, laced with irritation, Cheol So Pyeong's face hardened.
He spoke up.
"No, Father. No, Clan Head."
"...What?"
"I said no."
"You defying me?"
Cheol Mu Geuk scowled fiercely.
"You're the head of Goe Mountain Iron Family. Leaking clan treasures for personal favors or gain is unacceptable."
"Defying me and now lecturing?"
"My apologies. But no."
Cheol Mu Geuk stared at the resolute Cheol So Pyeong, then burst out laughing.
"Hahaha!"
"...Clan Head?"
"That's it. That's the Iron Family blood. Right?"
"Pardon?"
"Good job, So Pyeong. Always speak your mind like that."
At the sudden praise, Cheol So Pyeong looked dazed but flushed red.
...A bald, middle-aged muscleman blushing? Honestly, I wanted to erase it from memory.
"But I have my reasons. Head Sado."
"What's that?"
"His Majesty said to 'deal with' Mu Geuk Cheon Hwa. No specifics on how. Right?"
"Correct."
"If you capture it alive, hand it to me. Even if not, no need for the spirit core—just give me usable materials. Then I'll open the vault and lend what you need."
The math checked out instantly. I nodded readily.
"Deal."
"...Why so agreeable? Not like you."
"Don't want it? Fine."
"Feels like I'm getting scammed."
No scam. Just the numbers.
'Capture it alive, and they won't listen anyway.'
Divine beasts had human-level intellect plus animal instincts.
It'd know I couldn't harm it. Then it'd turn the tables and eat me. Gotta avoid becoming a pet's pet.
'Plus, Cheol Mu Geuk and Mu Geuk Cheon Hwa? Total matching set.'
Flame jade user meets fire divine beast? Unimaginable.
Even if no capture, materials were wasted on me. Better to Cheol Mu Geuk. Division of labor was modern common sense.
Kill Mu Geuk Cheon Hwa—don't capture. Eat the spirit core.
Pa Cheon was still hopeful about body repair.
"Good deal, eh, So Pyeong?"
"Yes. But Clan Head—Father. You repair any damaged loans yourself."
"...Urgh. Take back what I said about speaking your mind. Fine."
For all his words, Cheol Mu Geuk grinned happily. Those Iron father-son pair—such characters.
Even Cho Ryang watched them with a pleased smile.
"Then I'll tell the elders to bring the key."
"Good. This Gyoa Hongju will pass the time perfectly."
"Vault first. Booze later."
"You rotten punk."